owned (slang)
{{Short description|Slang word}}
{{other uses|OWN (disambiguation)}}
File:I Own You school sign.jpg
Owned is a slang word{{cite journal|url=http://www.anthrosource.net/doi/abs/10.1525/an.2006.47.1.62.2|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120801215833/http://www.anthrosource.net/doi/abs/10.1525/an.2006.47.1.62.2|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 1, 2012|title=Society For Linguistic Anthropology newsletter|doi=10.1525/an.2006.47.1.62.2}}{{cite web|url=http://www.swin.edu.au/sbs/ajets/journal/V3N2/pdf/V3N2-2-Blashki.pdf|title=Australian Journal of Emerging Technologies and Society}} that originated in the 1990s among hackers where it referred to "rooting" or gaining administrative control over someone else's computer. The term eventually spread to gamers, who used the term to mean defeat in gaming. Other variations of the word owned include own3d, 0wn3d, pwned, pwnt, POWER OWNED and pooned, terms which incorporate elements of leetspeak.
In 2009, Newgrounds described a security vulnerability in ActiveX as leaving Windows XP and Windows 2003 Server users open to a "Browse-And-Get-Owned" attack.[http://www.informationweek.com/news/security/vulnerabilities/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=218400787&subSection=Vulnerabilities+and+threats Tom Fulp, "Microsoft Warns Of 'Browse-And-Get-Owned' Attack", InformationWeek, July 7, 2009.]
Owned has now spread beyond computer and gaming contexts and become part of standard slang, especially in social media, and is typically used to signify severe defeat or humiliation, usually in an amusing way or through the dominance of an opposing party, in diverse contexts ranging from sports to politics (e.g. "Obama owns Fox News" or "Trump owns CNN").[http://catb.org/jargon/html/O/owned.html Owned] from the Jargon File, version 4.4.7. Retrieved 2007-09-22
Origins
The Jargon File, a historical glossary of computer slang, defines the hacker usage of owned as "your condition when your machine has been cracked by a root exploit, and the attacker can do anything with it."{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://catb.org/jargon/html/O/owned.html |title=owned |encyclopedia=The Jargon File, version 4.4.8 |date=October 1, 2004 |publisher=Eric S. Raymond }}
The term's original usage was close to that of the traditional meaning of the word own – for instance, "I owned the network at MIT" indicated that the speaker had cracked the servers and had the same root-level privileges that the legitimate owner of the servers had. By 1997, owned appeared in text illicitly added to websites in website defacements.{{cite web|url=http://attrition.org/mirror/attrition/1997/11/14/spice/|title=Spice Girls website defacement|publisher=attrition.org|date=14 Nov 1997|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051127183441/http://www.attrition.org/mirror/attrition/1997/11/14/spice/|archive-date=2005-11-27}}{{cite web|url=http://attrition.org/mirror/attrition/1997/12/08/www.yahoo.com/|title=Yahoo website defacement|publisher=attrition.org|date=8 December 1997|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060220104043/http://www.attrition.org/mirror/attrition/1997/12/08/www.yahoo.com/|archive-date=20 February 2006}}
Usage in gaming
The term "owned" subsequently spread to gaming circles, where it was used to refer to defeat in a game. For example, if a player makes a particularly impressive kill shot or wins a match by an appreciable margin in a multiplayer video game, it is not uncommon for him or her to say owned to the loser(s), as a manifestation of victory, a taunt, or provocation. Ownage has become a modern equivalent to "turkey shoot"; applicable when an experienced faction predictably annihilates a beginner or disadvantaged faction. In slang form, owned can be an adjective (He is owned), owning can be a verb (He is totally owning that guy.), and ownage can be a noun.{{Fact|date=January 2024}}
The phrase "own" can not only refer to defeating one particular player or team, but it can also be used to indicate total domination of the competition. The racing video game Need for Speed: Nitro follows this definition by awarding a special bonus called "Own it", in which a player earns points for every second they spend in first place, while also expressing their dominance visually to other opponents by painting every portion of the course where they lead with their tag and colors.{{cite web |title=NITRO Track Guide - Singapore |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4unrM9WGYlE |website=YouTube |publisher=Need for Speed |date=13 November 2009}}{{cite web|url = http://www.ign.com/articles/2009/11/04/need-for-speed-nitro-review-2|title = Need for Speed Nitro Review|author = Bozon, Mark|date = 4 November 2009|access-date = 2009-11-12}}
{{Anchor|politics}}
Usage in politics
{{Main|Owning the libs}}
In the late 2010s, the concept of ownage (specifically, "owning the libs") has become a defining ethos of right-wing politics in the United States.{{cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/how-owning-the-libs-became-the-ethos-of-the-right-2018-7|title=How 'owning the libs' became the ethos of the right|last=Perticone|first=Joe|date=July 28, 2018|work=Business Insider}} Ben Shapiro describes the concept in the National Review: {{quote|Here’s the process for how to own a lib, by the current logic: First, you say something that “triggers the libs”; then, when they make clear that they’re triggered, you mock them; then, by virtue of your mockery, you own them. What you choose to do with the libs you own is irrelevant; mere pride of ownership is the important thing.{{cite web|url=https://www.nationalreview.com/2018/07/owning-liberals-feels-great-but-risks-backlash-at-polls/|last=Shapiro|first=Ben|title=The Perils of 'Owning' the Libs|date=July 25, 2018|work=National Review}}}}
In other words, Republicans and conservatives may often prioritize opportunities to make Democrats and liberals feel bad, sometimes to a greater degree than actual policy achievement. Statements intended to upset liberals tend to be about topics known as culture war issues.{{cite news |last=Peters |first=Jeremy W. |date=August 3, 2020 |title=These Conservatives Have a Laser Focus: 'Owning the Libs' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/03/us/politics/the-federalist-trump-liberals.html |work=New York Times }}
This pugilistic style of politics is especially popular with Donald Trump and his supporters.{{cite news|title=Trump's letter to Pelosi accomplished its main goal: Owning the libs|first=Philip|last=Bump|date= January 17, 2019|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/01/17/trumps-letter-pelosi-accomplished-its-main-goal-owning-libs/}}{{cite web|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/01/donald-trump-military-option-venezuela|last=Nguyen|first=Tina|work=Vanity Fair|date=January 28, 2019|title=Will Trump Invade Venezuela to Own the Libs?}}{{cite news|title=The Death Logic behind Trumpism: Even nuclear winter would be worth it to own the libs|last=Heffernan|first=Virginia|date=January 12, 2019|work=Los Angeles Times|url=https://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-heffernan-shutdown-as-trump-doomsday-act-20190112-story.html}} However, it is a controversial practice inside and outside the Republican party. For example, Nikki Haley said "I know that it's fun and that it can feel good, but step back and think about what you're accomplishing when you do this — are you persuading anyone?"{{cite news|title=Nikki Haley warns against 'owning the libs.' That's basically Trump's entire political strategy.|last=Blake|first=Aaron|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2018/07/24/nikki-haley-warns-against-owning-the-libs-thats-basically-trumps-entire-political-strategy/|date=July 24, 2018}}